June 7 ~ James 2:1-4
1-4 My dear friends, don't let public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated faith. If a man enters your church wearing an expensive suit, and a street person wearing rags comes in right after him, and you say to the man in the suit, "Sit here, sir; this is the best seat in the house!" and either ignore the street person or say, "Better sit here in the back row," haven't you segregated God's children and proved that you are judges who can't be trusted?
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
I have a friend who is a youth pastor, and one time, a friend of his invited him to come to the friend’s church in another city and preach. But… the friend wanted this guy to dress poorly. He didn’t want him to shower or shave for a few days. My friend arrived for church looking bad and smelling worse. The idea was to see how those entering for worship would react to him.
I can’t recall all of the particulars of how it went down, but it wasn’t pretty, I can tell you that. On the whole, my friend said people were surprisingly nice to him. But there were looks, and comments under the breath, and a general disdain in the atmosphere. And then the time came for the “guest speaker,” and this dirty, smelly man came forward! Can you imagine the reaction of those people, especially those who had not exactly lived out a “glorious, Christ-originated faith?” Can you just feel how embarrassed and humbled they must have been?
The truth of the matter is that when God looks at us, sinners all, He has every right to see each of us filthy and smelly and covered by the dirt of our sins. And He would be fully justified in sending us away, kicking us to the curb, or at best, relegating us to gathering scraps from under His table. But that is not at all what God does. He gives us a place of honor. His Son Jesus Christ washed away our dirt and filth with His own blood. We sit at the King’s table and feast like royalty in His presence!
So the next time you are tempted to look down your nose at someone else, remember how filthy YOU are, and yet how much God loves you… and remind yourself that He loves this person, too. Treat others as YOU wish to be treated, show them the grace and mercy that God shows to us each day. Extend the hand of love, and leave any judgment to God Almighty!
©2008 Debbie Robus
------------------------------------------------------------------
June 6 ~ James 1:25-27
25 But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God—the free life!—even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it, is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action. That person will find delight and affirmation in the action.
26-27 Anyone who sets himself up as "religious" by talking a good game is self-deceived. This kind of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
One day I was getting my hair done at the beauty shop, and a woman came in for a manicure. She sat down and began talking about a diet aid she was selling, and her language was amazingly foul. She knew a lot of curse words, and she peppered her conversation with them. Trying to be polite, I asked, “How did you find out about this product?” She proceeded to explain that one Sunday after church she and her husband went out to eat with fellow church members and there wasn’t room for all of them at one table, and she ended up sitting at another table with someone who sold these products.
The rest of our conversation didn’t matter then, as it doesn’t today, because I never made it past the fact that this woman could so casually talk about church and use the foul language in practically the same sentences. To my way of thinking, any “witness” she might have had was totally obliterated when she opened her mouth and spewed the nastiness!
I don’t mean to be judgmental. But it just goes to show that “religious show” truly is a lot of hot air. I feel certain she felt that mentioning church and her fellow church members lent credibility to her “testimony” about her new business venture. But that was all negated for me by the four-letter language.
Don’t be known by your language and inappropriate behavior. Don’t toss around your church affiliation and “trade on it”. Be the real deal for God. Look for ways to serve Him that may seem small to you but are huge to God. Feed the homeless – for real! Volunteer at a shelter or the Christian Health Center or the local food bank. Show kindness to someone who is “hard to love.” Stick up for the person at school others consider a “weirdo.” Be polite in the check-out line, hold open doors for the elderly. Look for opportunities to serve God in ways great AND small… and at every turn.
And truly remember the first verses of today’s passage and focus on obeying God’s word and living by it. It may seem like God is telling us at times to do things that are hard… and certainly they may not be things we want to do. But God’s word truly does make us free – in ways we can’t even begin to imagine. Give it a try and see for yourself how happy you can become!
©2008 Debbie Robus
------------------------------------------------
June 5 ~ James 1:19-24
19-21 Post this at all the intersections, dear friends: Lead with your ears, follow up with your tongue, and let anger straggle along in the rear. God's righteousness doesn't grow from human anger. So throw all spoiled virtue and cancerous evil in the garbage. In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life. 22-24 Don't fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don't act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
Have you ever seen the old Saturday Night Live skits with Gilda Radner’s character, Emily Latilla? Radner played a little old lady who was hard of hearing and got things all out of whack. She would come on as a guest commentator on the “Weekend Update” segment and rant and rave about something she had misunderstood. One of my favorite was about "violins on television." “What’s wrong with violins?” she would yell. Finally, the “news anchor,” played by Jane Curtin, would tap her on the shoulder and say, “That’s violence.” “What?” Emily would ask. “That’s violence on TV, not violins.” Emily would reply, “Ohhhhh… that’s different…” and then she would deliver her famous punch line… “Never mind!” and smile sweetly into the camera.
James is pointing out that, like Emily Latilla, we don’t listen well. We don’t hear what is being said, and we don’t pay attention to the reading of God’s word. And more often than not, we misconstrue the meaning… and sometimes, we get angry. And James points out that anger is a huge waste of time… GOD’s time.
When we are not paying attention - when we are “hearing but not listening,” we make a mess of things. James is reminding us to truly pay attention. When you read your Bible (or the scripture in this devo!), pay attention to what it says. Study the words and read them several times and truly grasp the meaning. You may have to do what I do and seek other translations and make a comparison to completely understand the meaning. But don’t dart past quickly, like we do when checking our appearance in the mirror.
Get it right the first time. Don’t be like Emily Latilla. God needs us busy doing His work and furthering His kingdom. He doesn’t have time for us to waste on “Never minds!”
©2008 Debbie Robus
--------------------------------------------
June 4 ~ James 1:13-18
13-15 Don't let anyone under pressure to give in to evil say, "God is trying to trip me up." God is impervious to evil, and puts evil in no one's way. The temptation to give in to evil comes from us and only us. We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust. Lust gets pregnant, and has a baby: sin! Sin grows up to adulthood, and becomes a real killer.
16-18 So, my very dear friends, don't get thrown off course. Every desirable and beneficial gift comes out of heaven. The gifts are rivers of light cascading down from the Father of Light. There is nothing deceitful in God, nothing two-faced, nothing fickle. He brought us to life using the true Word, showing us off as the crown of all his creatures.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
Have you ever said to yourself or someone else, “I just don’t know what came over me!”? Have you ever done something you knew you shouldn’t and then tried to excuse it away by saying it was “God’s way of testing me.”? James is telling us that God does not operate this way. Just as I believe God does not cause illness, injury, abuse, deformity, and more – clearly He does not tempt us to sin, either.
I do believe God can take our bad situations and choices and use them to help us grow. I do believe He can turn around such things. And that is where we see His “good and perfect gifts.” He’s not trying to trick us into sinning so that He can rescue us and teach us a lesson. We make sinful choices totally on our own, with the help of Satan. The Book of James is not an “easy” scripture passage. James doesn’t sugar-coat the truth, which is that we are directly responsible for our actions, our choices… and often the consequences. We have nobody to blame but ourselves.
The GOOD NEWS is that God can help us correct a poor choice. Because He is a giver of “beneficial gifts,” He stands ready to show us a better way… and to forgive our mistakes – IF we will humbly and sincerely ask Him to do so. That doesn’t mean we can be habitual offenders and expect God to repeatedly rescue and forgive us. But it does mean that God stands ready to bless and reward… not to tempt and destroy. “Don’t get thrown off course…there is nothing deceitful in God.”
©2008 Debbie Robus
----------------------------------------------------------------------
June 3 ~ James 1:9-12
9-11 When down-and-outers get a break, cheer! And when the arrogant rich are brought down to size, cheer! Prosperity is as short-lived as a wildflower, so don't ever count on it. You know that as soon as the sun rises, pouring down its scorching heat, the flower withers. Its petals wilt and, before you know it, that beautiful face is a barren stem. Well, that's a picture of the "prosperous life." At the very moment everyone is looking on in admiration, it fades away to nothing.
12 Anyone who meets a testing challenge head-on and manages to stick it out is mighty fortunate. For such persons loyally in love with God, the reward is life and more life.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
I bet you can think of someone who seems (or seemed) to “have it all,” and you may have even said to yourself “they need to be taken down a notch or two.” You think that would make you feel better – that you would cheer as they were humbled. You might even think that James 1:9 is telling you to cheer such news! But honestly, that is not what James is saying at all.
See, what James is really saying is that earthly wealth and fame and “success” will not last – they are not Eternal. So, if someone who has never had these things gets a taste of them, it’s okay to be happy for them, because they hopefully will “remember their humble beginnings.” BUT… if God allows someone who “has it all” to experience a humbling – to be “brought low,” we should not celebrate their “humbling,” but rather we should be glad that in being humbled, they have a chance to grow in faith and obedience to God – and we should pray for that to happen.
I will tell you that I have been blessed in my life. In high school, I drove an old clunker Dodge Lancer that was an ugly mint green. In my 30’s, I drove a bright red Miata. Both were transportation (well MOST days the Dodge made it!), but the Miata was way more fun and surely looked better! I have known times when we had to track everything we spent in a month and count our pennies, and if we had enough left over the last day, we treated ourselves to Sonic® burgers and fries! And I have known times when I didn’t have to worry about the price of gas or groceries. I have also known times of accomplishment and joy – college degrees, good jobs, our wedding day … AND times of disappointment and sorrow – jobs I wanted but didn’t get, the death of loved ones, and other challenges of life.
What have I learned, and how does this passage apply? Someone who had acquired a fairly large amount of wealth and financial success once told me, “We were happier when we had nothing.” And that is what James is saying. Money and success, outer beauty and “things” don’t last. But God will bless those who remain faithful, even when they seemingly have nothing. If you can praise God and focus on Him even in the lean times, He will see that you are greatly rewarded and blessed. You may not drive a Miata or eat steak and lobster every night. In fact, you may never see an extra dime this side of Heaven. But your “crown of life” awaits you in Eternity. So hold on, keep looking to God for life and sustenance, and focus entirely on Him. The rest is all gravy.
©2008 Debbie Robus
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
June 2 ~ James 1:5-8
5-8 If you don't know what you're doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You'll get his help, and won't be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who "worry their prayers" are like wind-whipped waves. Don't think you're going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
I can’t tell you how much this passage has helped me. I used to feel like there were lots of matters that were just too petty or silly to ask God to help me resolve. He didn’t have time to help me find my car keys. He couldn’t be bothered to give me patience and the right things to try to reboot my computer, even when I was at my rope’s end. He wasn’t in the business of helping people get their hair done and their clothes on and make it out the door on time! Or was He?! It is funny how, once I tried praying about such “silly things,” they seemed to resolve themselves so much quicker. Answers seemed to come “from nowhere!”
I have to admit that I have also been guilty of “worrying my prayers.” I come from a long line of worry worts, so this was almost built into my genetic code! “God, please heal my loved one,” was followed with a wringing of the hands and pacing of the floor. “Oh, I wish there was something that I could do.” Did you notice the *I* in that sentence? Didn’t I give that to God already? Or, “God, I need help with this class. This material is not making sense, and the teacher is not explaining it well” – followed by long talks with friends about how awful the teacher was, how much we struggled in the class, and our worries about failing the tests.
Wouldn’t we be better served to set our worries aside and listen for God’s voice? Possibly He was telling us how to study, what to work on, and giving us reassurance that He would be with us when we took tests. Maybe He was trying to hand us patience and peace about our loved one’s illness. Maybe He was trying to steer us toward a scripture passage that would give us comfort. But we were so busy worrying that we didn’t hear or see Him right in front of us.
So what have we learned? So far, we have learned that troubles and challenges will come, but God will help us grow from them. Now we see that “worrying our prayers” doesn’t help us get answers – and it may in fact keep us from getting an answer (or at least recognizing it!). And best of all, we have learned that we can ask God for anything – that no issue is too great or too small for Him to handle, and He does want to hear from us. So what are you waiting for? Don’t you have something to talk about with God?
©2008 Debbie Robus
-----------------------------------------------------------------
June 1 ~ James 1:1-4
1 I, James, am a slave of God and the Master Jesus, writing to the twelve tribes scattered to Kingdom Come: Hello! Faith Under Pressure
2-4 Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
Have you ever been asked to do something by someone, like your mom (or your brother or sister, or your spouse), and you shot back, “Do you see the word SLAVE on my back?” or “I’m not your slave!” Can you imagine that James actually declares himself a “slave of God”? Have you considered that we are “slaves of God” – and moreover, we should gladly claim that title?
Why would we want to be anyone’s slave, even God’s? Theoretically, masters take care of their slaves. Yes, the slaves SERVE the master, but in return, their needs are met – food, clothing, shelter. And yes, some masters are unkind and mistreat their slaves… and the slaves are not serving of their own free will. But did you know that even when masters have emancipated (freed) their slaves, sometimes the slaves asked to stay and continue serving? Surely their lives included some tests and challenges, but they stayed anyway.
I don’t want us to miss this… God has chosen us. He is not a cruel Master, like some we have read about in the history books and the news media. He is a loving, kind, generous Father Who gave His only Son’s life to spare ours. Yet serving Him – and bowing to HIS will - will involve tests, challenges, and pressure. Why would a loving God allow this? James says clearly that these things help us to mature and become well-developed. God knows what He is doing! He chose us, and if we choose to stay with Him, He will give us many gifts, including a strengthened faith.
What about you? Are you a “free slave” who will choose to stay? Consider the gift of Eternal life and make a wise choice!
©2008 Debbie Robus
No comments:
Post a Comment